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Forestry undergraduate student Hannah Hampton collects a water sample from College Creek as part of Dr. Jan Thompson's research.

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Discover your passion

Be greater than you imagine as a Cyclone. Explore CALS majors and other degree options designed to inspire, challenge and prepare you to create a better world.

See yourself in...

sweeping for insects

Extension

Exploring the world of organic agriculture at Iowa State

Reuben Weers Feng

Research

Researchers identify the role of genes that boost disease resiliency in rice

MultiOption

Learning

Multidisciplinary option lets students customize their education

Kelsey Henderson
“It's not about what awards or titles you win, but how you can truly make a difference in any way at any level.”
Kelsey Henderson, '24 agricultural business

Hands-on approach

From Cyclones in the making to those already formed, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences has a place for everyone. The innovations made in the labs, the farms, the forests and the fields strive to carry out Iowa State’s original land grant mission: discovering, developing, disseminating and preserving knowledge.

Learn more about research within CALS

Explore Iowa State University demonstration farms

See the world with Iowa State

woman with bottle
Innovation in Action
men in field
Farms and Facilities
Economics field trip in London
Go Global

Recent News

  • 3D-printed bees and pollen suspended from a honeycomb-shaped light.

    New artwork aims to inspire viewers to think about agriculture, life sciences

    September 6, 2024

    At its best, art can inspire, entertain and inform. The new mural and suspended bee mobile on the fourth floor of the Student Innovation Center at Iowa State University succeeds at all the above.

  • Daniel Robison and Sara Kvidera standing on either side of a podium with the CALS logo on it.

    Kvidera selected as 2024 Emerging Iowa Leader

    September 3, 2024

    Sara Kvidera (’17 PhD nutritional sciences), a dairy technical consultant with Elanco Animal Health, is the recipient of the 2024 Emerging Iowa Leader Award. The honor is presented annually to College of Agriculture and Life Sciences alums in leadership positions, working to strengthen agriculture and life sciences and providing outstanding service as CALS graduates.

  • Clear petri dish with a number of Anopheles mosquitoes collected in Iowa. Photo by Ryan Smith.

    Iowa program tracks mosquito trends over 50 years: 2024 a big year

    August 26, 2024

    Despite a slow start following several dry years, mosquito populations in Iowa have ramped up this season due to regular rains and flooding in some areas of the state, according to Ryan Smith, associate professor of plant pathology, entomology and microbiology at Iowa State University. 

    Smith leads the Iowa Mosquito Surveillance Program, which has been running since the 1960s. It is one of the country’s most active, long-running programs, and one of the few led by an academic institution.

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